Hueneme Beach, This American Life, and Balloon Vacations

Over the last year or so, I have been going down to the beach and walking for an hour or two on the weekends. I haven't been consistent with my walking. The wife suggest I go walking today and that was very good idea. I have been spending too much time in front of the confuser. So, after catching up on my weekly Dr. Who and Battlestar Galactica fix, I went to my favorite beach - Hueneme Beach (Pronounced Why-Knee-Me). The beach is clean and rarely crowded. A lot of our beaches have tar balls from the nearby oil rigs and be very messy on the shoes. Hueneme Beach is one of the clean ones since it faces more to the south. I park near the Hueneme Pier and walk towards Point Mugu Naval Air Station (part of Naval Base Ventura County). The total walk there and back is about two hours.

My walk today was delightful. It was windy but not cold. The sun peeked out from behind the clouds. I had my MP3 player full of This American Life episodes. This American Life is an NPR radio show that tries to tell the American Story. The stories are interesting and often fascinating. By the way, for those who care, This American Life is now available as a FREE podcast. I have been waiting for this for a long time. I have some 288 episodes downloaded and now I will have a new one every Monday starting on the 16th. My big problem is finding the time to listen. I estimate that it will take some 6 years to listen to them all.

This was the first time I walked with my camera. Once I saw a Jelly Fish washed up on shore. It looked like a translucent mountain - a crystal Mount Rainier. I regretted not having my camera. When I headed back toward the pier the visitor was gone - washed back to sea by the tide.

I was ready this time. I took a few pictures, as you can see. The fence attempting to divide the ocean marks the boundary of Point Mugu.

I am sure you have always wondered, like I have, where balloons go when they want to vacation, relax, and unwind. They go to Hueneme Beach, of course. I caught this clan frolicking in the sun. They look so relaxed.